In a hospital or clinic, medical devices are often attached to a clamp which is clamped or secured to a pole located in a room where patients receive diagnostic care and/or treatment. One or more devices can be mounted by clamps on the same pole at the same time. When one of the medical devices is needed to care for a patient in a different area within the hospital or clinic, that device's clamp is unclamped or released from the pole and the device and clamp are relocated to a different pole in the different area. At other times, medical devices may also be dismounted from a pole and remounted to the same pole when the caregiver wishes to change the elevation of the medical device; for example, to better accommodate the particular caregiver's physical stature.
The cross-sectional profile of hospital or clinic poles can vary according to the particular pole model. See, for example, “I.V. POLE STANDS AND TOOL-FREE ACCESSORIES” by MEDLINE, ©2010, which shows several example I.V. pole stands and accessories available from MEDLINE INDUSTRIES, INC. Common cross-sectional shapes include round and rectangular, though other shapes are also possible. The cross-sectional areas of a given shape may also differ from one pole to another. For example, one circular cylindrical pole may have a larger diameter than another circular cylindrical pole. The cross-sectional area for a given pole can also vary, such as when the pole is a telescoping model, in which case an upper portion of the pole can be of a smaller diameter than a lower portion of the pole. It is also possible for the cross-sectional shape to vary within a given pole. For example, such poles can be round in one region and rectangular in another.
Conventional medical device pole clamps typically have a fixed backstop opposite a push plate that is connected to a threaded rod having a turn knob at an opposite end. Hence, when a medical device is dismounted from one circular cross-section pole and moved to another circular cross-section pole, or is repositioned higher or lower on a telescoping circular cross-section pole, the medical professional or other staff member using the pole clamp must spend extra time turning the knob to advance or retract the push plate to fit the new pole circumference. Furthermore, when a medical device is dismounted from a circular cross-section pole and is remounted to a rectangular cross-section pole, the pole clamp may need to be detached from the medical device and a different, more suitable pole clamp attached to the medical device before the medical device is remounted to the new pole.
Therefore, there is a need for a medical device pole clamp that is easily releasable and readily and efficiently adapts to multiple pole cross-sections, including multiple circular cross-sections and varied rectangular (and other shaped) cross-sections.